


soullessness

by TrainRush



Series: Febuwhump 2021 [6]
Category: A Hat in Time (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Character Study, Gen, Insomnia, Missing Scene, Self-Doubt, based on that one frame from the rumbi storybook :), slightly implied hat has adhd
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-06
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-03-17 22:40:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29233158
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrainRush/pseuds/TrainRush
Summary: DAY 6: insomniaThe emptiness of a missing soul is not easily replaceable.—(or, alternatively, hat kid gets insomnia over her missing soul. she thinks a bit about this.)
Series: Febuwhump 2021 [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2105115
Comments: 5
Kudos: 28





	soullessness

There was emptiness where warmth once was in Hat Kid’s heart.

The emptiness almost felt strangely heavy, and it weighed her down as she laid restlessly in bed, staring up at the ceiling. She couldn’t sleep; in fact, she hadn’t been able to get a full night’s rest even once since meeting that spirit in Subcon who had stolen her soul. The feeling was awful, and no matter what she did, it just wouldn’t go away. Nothing could fill that gap in her heart where her soul had once been. It was almost  _ painful  _ with how much it weighed her down.

Heck, she could hardly even do that shadow’s tasks without her soul! Without her soul, Hat Kid lost her spirit. Her livelihood. Her determination to keep pushing onward. And without that determination, she was constantly on the edge of giving up. She knew she couldn’t, but it was often tempting. If she gave up, she’d never get her soul back, Mustache Girl would take over the world or something, and then what would she do? She wouldn’t have any soul or fighting spirit to fight back with. But despite knowing she couldn’t throw in the towel — or maybe hat in her case — there were still times where she’d sit and consider the circumstances. How important she really was in the grand scheme of things.

Well, of course Hat Kid was an important figure. She was the owner of all the Time Pieces scattered across the land. Only she (and now Mustache Girl) knew their true power, which meant that she needed to collect them before anyone else learned, too. Her mission was urgent. Everything that she did was important. Yet again, somehow the absence of her soul twisted her thoughts. Hopelessness made itself a home in the empty space her soul had left. 

What would she even have to do to get her soul back? Would she have to fight that monstrosity? Wrestle for it? Maybe she’d have to turn one of his contracts against him. At this point, she’d do anything. Especially after those tasks he’d given her. Commit murder? Clean some filthy old well? What more could he possibly have wanted from her? Next thing she knew, he’d be asking her to confront his ex or something. 

Hat Kid scoffed to herself, feeling her anger build. What a crappy guy. She was just a kid! A kid looking for her lost stuff! And that  _ thing  _ really thought it’d be okay to  _ enslave  _ her? What even  _ were  _ they? A noodle? No, calling them a noodle sounded too kind. Affectionate, almost. Which was the very last thing Hat Kid could have possibly felt towards them. They were just some annoying, creepy shadow and nothing more than that could have been said. 

Hat Kid turned over onto her side, and then rolled onto the other, trying to fix her position to make herself comfortable. Yet nothing she did worked, and Hat Kid was left facing the ceiling again.

What time was it, even?

Slowly raising herself up, Hat Kid rubbed her eyes and moved her hat out of the way to check the clock on her nightstand.

1:37 AM.

Cradling her head in her hands, Hat Kid sighed. She should have been well asleep by now, and yet there she was, wide awake at half past one in the morning. Staring at the wall in silent annoyance, she wondered if soul deprivation made everyone this restless. For a moment, she considered attempting to find a book in her machine room on the phenomenon, but she shrugged the thought away before she could wake herself up even more than she already was. No. Hat Kid needed sleep.

So she tried resting her head on her pillow again, snuggled beneath the covers, eyes shut.

The clock on the wall ticked.

The electronics in her doors and in the walls beeped and chimed.

Noises from outside the spaceship sounded quietly.

Hat Kid’s eyes opened again. Overcome by annoyance, she attempted to fold her pillow around her head, covering her ears and turning on her side. Even still, it was too much to hold up, and Hat Kid released the pillow from her head.

Was her bedroom too hot? Too cold? If it was either, she couldn’t tell.

No, it was definitely her soul. Which was arguably the worst of all.

She was supposed to be sleeping right now, so she couldn’t get up and go try and take her soul back. But she also couldn’t sleep because of it, so what was she supposed to do? Just lay there and accept it? Apparently, because she was too tired to do anything else. Tired, sleepy, but not able to sleep. Did she have any medication? Sleeping pills or something like that? She couldn’t remember, so she assumed not.

This hurt. All Hat Kid wanted to do was rest. To fall asleep and stay asleep. But she couldn’t. Her mind just wouldn’t let her. She almost felt like crying. All she could do was wait. Wait and wait for however long it took for her to finally fall asleep. And waiting was painful.

If only that damn shadow…

If only she’d steered clear of their sight…

If only she’d left Subcon alone entirely…

In her mind, Hat Kid swore. This was all that pecking ghost’s fault. She wanted so badly to give them a piece of her mind. To hit them, or something. To get her revenge and take back her soul. 

A daydream materialized in Hat Kid’s mind where she could do that. She imagined them cowering in fear as she stood victorious, umbrella in one hand and contract in the other. She’d put down her umbrella, hold out the contract in front of them, and rip it to shreds. She’d go through every single one until every binding she had to them was eliminated. And then she’d hit them once or twice for good measure.

The daydream eventually faded into misty sleepiness as Hat Kid slowly fell into a light sleep.


End file.
